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CHAPTER FOUR

“The skank unfriended me too,” said Reece, staring at the shop’s computer, sitting on the front sales counter. Facebook sat open on the screen in all its blue brilliance.

“Bitch,” I muttered.

Skye had a new name and it wasn’t nice. Much deserved, but not nice.

Between Reece and I, we’d called everyone who might have known where she’d gone. Lucky it’d been a quiet Saturday morning so far. We’d had no luck with our search. People either didn’t know or weren’t saying. Everyone sounded sorry. But no one could, or would, help. Some days, humanity sucked.

“I think we should stop,” I said.

“What? Why?”

“Think about it. Realistically, what would I even do if I found her?” I crossed my arms and leaned my hip against the counter. The pose was all the better for holding my shit together. “Slapping her silly is illegal. As nice as it would be to rip her a new one, it won’t get me my money back. There’s no point going to the police because it’s just her word against mine. I’m screwed.”

“There’s the defeatist attitude I’ve come to know and love.”

“Shuddup.” I smiled.

Reece smiled back at me, little lines appearing at the corners of his eyes behind his cool-guy thick-rimmed black glasses. A dimple popped in his cheek. He had an awesome smile. No matter how many times I’d seen it, I’d never quite become inured. Though, upon reflection, it didn’t make me stupid like Mal’s cocky grin.

Huh, interesting.

There was, however, a lot to be said for not being reduced to brain-dead hormonal mush by a man. Reece and I were solid. Though, for some reason, the usual rush I got from being around him was missing. Still, I barely knew Mal. Reece was real. Mal was just a dream on my teenage bedroom wall.

And since when did I compare Reece’s smile to anyone’s?

“What was the party you went to?” Reece asked, scratching his head in his usual adorable manner. His dark hair flopped over his forehead and I just knew we’d make great babies together one day. Marriage would never be in the cards, not for me. The institution meant so little. But there was a lot to be achieved just by living in sin, by being a life partner.

Reece would make a great life partner.

When Lauren had hinted at my having a thing for Reece last night, she might have known what she was talking about.

Ah, Reece.

I’d worked at Lewis’s bookshop since moving to Portland two years ago. Lizzy had asked me to come out for a while, to help her settle in. Obviously, I was still here. I liked being close to my sister and Portland was a cool city. I liked my job and the friends I’d made. Everything was better here.

“Lauren invited me to drinks at Ev’s,” I said.

Reece’s chin retreated in what appeared to be amazement. “The girl that married the dude from Stage Dive?”

“That’s the one.”

“And you didn’t invite me? Damn, A. I like a couple of their songs. That San Pedro album wasn’t bad. Their new stuff is shit, though, gotta say.”

“I love the new album. “Over Me” is a great song.”

He snickered, the corner of his mouth lifting. “It’s a song about someone doing your friend.”

“I choose to ignore that aspect.”

An elderly woman in tie-dye wandered in, heading straight for the self-help/philosophy section. Two teenagers started making out next to the new cookbook display. Sweet, but this was hardly the place for it. When a hand wandered too far south I cleared my throat, loudly. “Keep it above the waist, boys.”

The bell above the door jangled crazily as they bolted from the shop at light speed. One turned on the most amazing blush. I almost felt bad for him. Guess he’d wanted that grope real bad.

Reece chuckled. Well, he might. He picked up regularly within these four walls. A habit he’d hopefully grow out of one day soon. “Calm down. They weren’t hurting anyone.”

“There’s a time and a place.”

The little bell above the door dinged again as about the last person I expected strolled on in. Evelyn entered with a cup of coffee in hand and a hesitant smile on her face. Despite only working a couple of blocks away, I don’t think she’d ever been in the shop before. For certain, she’d never delivered coffee to me. If that was what was about to happen.

I stared in surprise.

Reece perked up. Then he spotted her humongous wedding engagement ring combo and perked back down again. Coming in from across the river, he didn’t go past Ruby’s Café like I did. Ev was unknown to him.

“We missed you this morning,” she said, sliding the tall cardboard cup of coffee onto the counter in front of me. “You didn’t stop by for your regular. Figured I’d bring it to you.”

“You’re wonderful. I woke up late for some reason.”

“Fancy that.” She smiled.

I took a sip of the superhot brew. Perfect. It was fucking perfect. Evelyn was basically the patron saint of the coffee bean. What I’d do in a few weeks when she left to go on tour with the band, I had no idea.

Cry, most likely.

Ev’s long blond hair was tied back in a braid. Like me, she wore head-to-toe black. Only she wore a pencil skirt while I’d gone for skinny jeans. “Ruby’s Café” was plastered across her bounty of boobs while “Lewis’s Independent Book Store” was written over my more sedate mounds. Apart from the chunk of ice on her finger she could have been any other local girl. Why she kept working as a barista when she’d married a millionaire I had no idea and it wasn’t my place to ask.

I turned to introduce her to Reece but he’d taken the opportunity to disappear out back, all interest in Ev gone as soon as he saw the ring.

“I also wanted to apologize for last night,” she said, resting her arms on the counter.

“What for?”

“The part where Mal tackled you onto the floor, mostly. Unless there’s something else I missed I should also be apologizing for?”

“No.” I waved her words away, smiling. No need to bring up my shouting abuse at her guest earlier in the evening. “That was fine. He was just playing.”

“Yeah. He’s kind of like a puppy on steroids. Doesn’t know his own strength.” She looked around the shop, face open, curious. “This place is great. Why haven’t I been in here before?”

“Time, probably. When you weren’t working you were studying. Now you’re married.”

“True.” She beamed. “It was good to see you last night, Anne. I’m glad to hear Mal didn’t do any permanent damage.”

“No, I’m fine. And thank you very much for the coffee. I seriously needed it. I don’t know how you handle getting up so early after the late nights.”

She lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. “Things wound down pretty much straight after you left. Ben and Mal went out, taking everyone with them. David and I crashed. We don’t do the party thing often. If we did I’d be ruined this morning.”

“Ah.”

“Sooo, David said you were talking to Mal out on the balcony for a while.…” Which was about when her coffee-bearing visit started to make sense.

“Yeah, I was,” I said. “And then David asked me if he’d said anything. I still don’t know what that was about.”

Ev’s lips pressed tight. “Mm.”

“He sent you to ask me about it,” I guessed. Correctly, if the flash of guilt in her eyes was any indicator.

“You deserved coffee, anyway. But yes, he did ask if I would mind talking to you.”

“Okay.” I licked my lips, buying some time to get my thoughts in order. Out of sight my foot fidgeted, doing its best to wear a hole in the carpet. “Honestly, we didn’t talk about much, nothing particularly personal or private. Just some nonsense about my ex-roommate.”

“Lauren mentioned.” Pity filled Ev’s eyes.

I shrugged. “Yeah, never mind. I’ll figure it out. But really, Mal and I didn’t talk much about himself. Mostly, he just teased me.”

“He does that.” For a moment longer, she looked at me. Trying to gage the truth, I guess. She was clearly pretty worried about Mal, but the fact was we didn’t know one another well enough for this sort of heart-to-heart. It felt awkward, stilted.

“Thanks for letting me know,” she said at last. “Mal’s been acting strange since he came up a week ago. Manic … more so than usual. Then other times he just stares into space. We’ve tried talking to him, but he says nothing’s wrong.”

“I’m sorry.”

“We don’t know if he’s depressed or on drugs or what. And after having Jimmy go through rehab so recently …” She gave me a small, sad smile. “I’d appreciate you not mentioning this to anyone.”

“Of course.”

“Anyway, I’m done for the day. I’d better get going. David will be wondering where I am. It was good to see you.”

“You too.”

“Come over again soon, okay?” She backed toward the door, waving good-bye. The request seemed genuine. It soothed my heart. After the horror of Skye I could do with some real friends.

“I will. Thanks again for the caffeine.”

She gave me the rock-star chin tip and then she was gone.

Reece wandered back out, his own cup of coffee in hand. “Your friend go?”

I snapped back to reality, dragging my mind away from the six-foot something conundrum that was Mal. My mind liked lingering on him far too much. He’d apparently become my new go-to thought despite all of the other things happening in my life. “Yeah, she had to get back to work.”

“You’re frowning. Still worrying about the bitch?”

I nodded the lie. Though it wasn’t exactly a lie. I worried about everything. Mal had been wrong. Uptight wasn’t my thing, worry was, and right now I was worrying about him. I shook off my frown, drank some more coffee. “Why don’t we do some work today, boss?”

“This is why you should be in charge.” Reece sighed dramatically. He had an impressive business degree behind him while I’d only barely finished high school, but most days it seemed I was the one with the work ethic. When mom went through her darkest days after Dad left, I couldn’t just leave her on her own. The day I came home to find her lining up codeine and sleeping pills on her bedside table convinced me of that. So I was ‘homeschooled.’ Child Protection Services came around once and we put on a good enough show.

I made damn sure Lizzy turned up to classes at the local high school Monday to Friday, however.

Reece lifted a box of new stock onto the counter so we could start pricing it out. “Tell me more about last night.”

“Ah, I got to meet a couple of the band members. That was cool.”

“You got to talk to them?” Reece’s expression was rapt. Usually shop talk revolved around his innuendos and escapades due to my life being boring. His language, not mine. I’m pretty sure you don’t need to be balling every female in the downtown Portland area to make conversation. Perhaps that was why we’d never gotten together. Our hobbies differed so wildly.

My thoughts were remarkably bitter and twisted today.

Where had I left my happy face? Most likely it still lay on my doorstep, where it had fallen some sixteen hours ago. Malcolm Ericson had briefly resuscitated my joy before he’d started in on my supposed failings. Still, just thinking about him made me feel lighter.

How strange.

Lizzy hadn’t texted me back yet. Not a surprise. Her college lifestyle kept her pretty busy. She could also be crap at remembering to charge her cell. I didn’t doubt my sister would be there for me, though. Her and her dorm-room floor. I’d left a message for my landlord and received no response from him either. Fat chance he’d give me an extension on the rent. Even if I found a new roommate in record time, I still couldn’t come up with my half of the money.

Time to admit defeat whether Reece liked it or not. Time to move on.

Said friend waved his hand in my face. “Anne, fill me in. You get to talk to them or not?”

“Sorry. Yes, I talked to Mal, the drummer.”

“About?”

There was the question on everyone’s lips.

“Not much, it was only briefly. He was busy. There were lots of people there.” For some reason, I was loath to admit to more. Actually, for several reasons. Talking to Reece about another man would be weird. Also, I’d clearly blown the night out of proportion when it came to Mal Ericson. There’d been no connection. No one had looked into anyone else’s soul. My fevered imagination had clearly been working overtime last night. So I rushed right on. “David seemed nice. Ben was there too, but I didn’t really get to speak to him.”

“You’re totally dropping names right now.” He chuckled.

I gave him a friendly smack in the ribs. “You asked. It’s not name dropping if you asked.”

“Okay, okay, I believe you. Don’t beat me up. So can you get me into the next party there?”

“I doubt I’ll be going to another party there, Reece. It was a pure fluke I wound up there last night.”

“What use are you?” he joked.

The elderly tie-dyed woman shuffled toward the counter with a copy of The Alchemist in hand.

“That’s a great book. I think you’ll really like it.” I rang up her purchase and handed it over for her to put in her reusable bag. Was there anything more wonderful than sending someone home with a book you loved? No, there was not.

I turned to Reece, who was straightening up some credit card receipts. “So you want to hang out tonight?” I asked. “If you’re not doing anything. Maybe I’ll try to perfect my martini.”

“Hmm, I’m kind of leaving my calendar open tonight. There’s a girl I’m waiting to hear from.”

Of course there was.

“Buuut,” he strung out the word. “If she doesn’t call me, how about I come over for a martini?”

My heart sank a little bit. Stupid heart. I put on a fake smile. “Sure, Reece, it’s not like I have anything better to do than wait around for you all night.”

“Exactly,” he said, and I couldn’t tell if he was joking or not. At that moment, I wondered what exactly I had been chasing and why. Answer: a dream, because I was an idiot. Maybe Mal had a point about my usability. I’d covered for mom for so many years, perhaps the habit had stuck.

He was fiddling with his phone now, a goofy half smile on his face. “She wants to meet up,” he said. “So … I have a huge favor. Could you close up tonight? Since you’re not doing anything?”

“I should really say no. Shit, Reece. I’m not a total loser. I do have some boundaries.” No matter what Malcolm Ericson said.

“Please. I’m sorry. You’re right, I shouldn’t have asked that. And I respect your boundaries, I do. I’m an ass and you’re a name-dropping celebrity party animal. Forgive me?” He didn’t look sorry, just vaguely desperate. But whatever, this was Reece. The man had offered me his couch last night as an emergency home.

And let’s face facts. He was right; I didn’t have any grand plans outside of reading.

“Alright,” I said, resentment burning deep down in my soul. It soon gave way to sadness. Probably, I should buy chocolate or alcohol on my way home. A truly wise use of the extra money made from the extra hours. Chocolate martini, here I come.

“Thanks. I owe you.”

“No worries. Not like I have anything going on.”

It wasn’t as if I’d be seeing Mal ever again.

CHAPTER FIVE

Something was wrong. Again. This time, I knew it before I walked in the door.

Work had picked up in the afternoon. There’d been no more time for worry, or bitter and twisted thoughts. Definitely a good thing. Now, I was ten types of tired. Two hours of sleep and stressing over money had done me in. The icy cold wind I’d walked in after getting off the MAX had frozen my neck and the tip of my nose. Any chocolate-and booze-fetching plan had flown straight out the window. I wanted a bath and bed. That was my entire plan for the night and it was a beautiful thing.

In a daze, I slid my key into the lock, which was when the door flew in–it wasn’t even latched. Balance shot to shit, I fell, face planting in the middle of a hot, hard, sweaty chest.

I oomphed.

He grunted.

Strong hands grabbed me about the waist, holding me steady. A good thing, I really needed a hand right then or my ass might’ve met the floor. Perhaps I’d entered the wrong apartment. My mind had been elsewhere, worlds away from reality. Another apartment would certainly explain the delicious warm body I was up against.

Since when did sweat smell so good?

It was all I could do not to rub my face in, breathing deep. A sniff or two shouldn’t be going too far. Discreetly done, of course.

“Anne. Dude.” The chest vibrated beneath my cheek. “Welcome home!”

I knew that voice. I did. But what the hell was it doing in my apartment? Stunned, I blinked up at a familiar beautiful face. “Mal?”

“’Course it’s me.” He laughed. “You on drugs or something? You shouldn’t do drugs. They’re not good for you.”

“I’m not doing drugs.” Though drugs might have gone a ways toward explaining what I was seeing. Because what I was seeing was surreal. “You’re here.”

No doubt about it. He definitely was. I would know because my hands were still all over his hot, half-naked body. My hormones sidetracked any thoughts about their removal. I couldn’t blame them.

“I know,” he said. “Isn’t it great?”

“Yeah. Wow.”

He nodded.

I stared. How the hell did he get in? The door had been locked when I left.

“How was work?” he asked.

“Fine. Thank you.”

He smiled down at me. “I was expecting you hours ago.”

“Yeah, I had to close up and some people came in at the last minute. Mal, why are you here in my apartment without a shirt on? How did that happen?”

“It got hot moving shit.” He rolled his neck, stretching out the muscles. “You’re only on the second floor, but the stairs start to add up, you know? Nate and Lauren helped out for a bit, then they had to go. Anyway, not like you care, right? No dress code I need to know about?”

I still stared. Words came out of his mouth but they continued to make no sense. Nothing about this did.

His eyes narrowed on me. “Hang on, I’ve got my shirt off and everything and you’re not giving me crazy eyes. What’s with that?”

“Ah, I guess I’m too surprised at seeing you here.”

His brows descended, as did the corners of his gorgeous lips. The man looked seriously sad. “Been looking forward to it all day.”

“Sorry.”

“Never mind. Come on, check it out.” He pulled me into the apartment, my apartment, slamming the door shut behind me. Not answering the important question about his presence even a little. But what was truly upsetting was the way he separated my hands from his body. They wept silently. Either that or I was sweating. Most likely the latter. He had the weirdest effect on me.

“Ta-da,” he sang, waving a hand about in a grand gesture, presenting my small living room to me.

“Wow.”

“Awesome, right?”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah! I knew you’d love this.”

I stared some more. Then I rubbed my eyes because they were starting to hurt. It was probably from all the bulging but I couldn’t be sure.

What the hell was happening here?

“You moved in with me somehow.” There could be no other reason for an entire drum kit appearing in the corner, let alone all the other stuff. The Twilight Zone had officially been entered. “You … huh. How about that.”

He grimaced and rocked back on the heels of his Chucks. “I know what you’re gonna say, it’s sooner than I thought too. But Davie threw me out today so I figured, why wait?”

I just blinked, the rest of me being too frozen to respond.

“Okay. Long story short, I accidentally saw Ev naked.” He held up his hands, protesting his innocence. “It was only side boob, I swear. No nipple or anything like that. But you know what he’s like with her, the fucking drama queen. He completely lost his shit.”

I nodded. I didn’t actually have a clue, but it seemed a response was required.

“Exactly. As if it’s my fault. It was in the fucking kitchen! I just wanted something to eat and there they are, dry humping against the wall. I didn’t even know she’d gotten home from work. As if I want to see that. It’s like walking in on your folks. Well, except Ev actually has great tits.” His guilty gaze slid to my face. “Alright, there might have been a flash of nipple but I swear it’s not like I went out of my way to see it. Not my fault she was topless. Anyway, Davie went ballistic.”

“He did?”

“Oh yeah. Huge. Harsh words were said. We may have even wrestled slightly. But I forgive him. Love makes you psycho, right?”

“Right.” There was a sentiment I could wholeheartedly get behind. When my first boyfriend broke up with me at sixteen, my tiny little world had been rocked. And look at my mom. She’d lost her shit completely when dad left.

“Mm.”

“So you moved in with me?” I said, ever so slowly piecing the story together.

Mal shrugged. “Well, hell yeah!”

“No, I mean, you actually moved in with me. Here. Into my apartment. Um, how did you get in again, just out of interest?”

“Is this going to be an issue?” he asked with a long, winded sigh. “Anne, come on. We talked about this last night. If you were gonna have a problem with me moving in, that was the time to bring it up, not now.”

“I thought you were joking.”

“Dude, that’s offensive. Why would I joke about important stuff like that?”

“Because you were drunk?”

“I get some of my best ideas under the influence.”

“I didn’t even think you’d remember.”

“Again, offended,” he said. “I’m not some fifteen-year-old. I know what I can handle.”

“Sorry.” I don’t quite know why I was the one apologizing. But never mind. My legs felt weak. I perched on the edge of the nearest couch. It was incredibly comfortable, though it did little for my sudden light-headedness.

Mal Ericson.

Living with me.

He did indeed look serious as evidenced by the little indent between his brows from frowning back at me. Ever so subtly I kicked myself, to check I was awake and not dreaming. Crap, it hurt. Pain radiated from my anklebone, making me wince. Yep, wide awake. Also, the heel on my Docs packed a punch.

“You’re looking at me weird again,” he said.

“Am I?”

He rolled his eyes. “Women. Honest, I swear, it was a hint of nipple and no more. I meant no disrespect to Evvie.”

I leaned down, surreptitiously rubbing my brand-new bruise. “I believe you.”

“Good. Can you please stop bringing it up?”

I opened my mouth to tell him I hadn’t. But it seemed safer to keep the thought to myself. Who knew what tangent it would launch him into next? Mal Ericson was a hard man to keep up with.

“Shit, you don’t like the couch do you?” he asked. “That’s what the look is about.”

“The couch?”

“Man.” Mal hung his head, hands on his slim hips. “I called Ev to ask what color you’d want but she started asking questions and then she started yelling and it was just a fucking mess. I can’t be standing in some furniture shop arguing on the phone with some chick, you know? I’ve gotta reputation to consider. So I tried calling Lauren ‘cause I figured she might have a spare key to your place–which she did.”

“Lauren let you in?”

“Yeah. And she said to definitely get that one, said you’d go nuts for it.”

“No, it’s … um, it’s really nice.” I ran my palm over the velvet fabric. It felt divine, super soft. No way did I want to know what it must have cost.

“Really?” He looked at me from beneath his brows, mouth tight with concern. Still, the green and hazel of his eyes was crystal clear. He seemed almost childlike somehow, vulnerable. “You’re sure you like it?”

I couldn’t tear my gaze away from him to give the item of furniture a proper perusal. No doubt, however, it looked every bit as good as it felt. “It’s beautiful, Mal.”

“Phew.” His sudden grin lit my world.

I smiled back so hard my face hurt. “Look, I’m not saying no to you moving in. I guess I’m still trying to get my head around the concept. But why do you want to live with me?”

“I like you,” he said simply.

“You barely know me.”

“You’re a friend of Ev’s and Lauren’s. We talked. I tackled you. We rolled around on the floor together. It was a real bonding experience.”

I blinked.

“More? Seriously?”

“Please.”

“You know, I’ve never lived with a female before. Well, not since my mom and sisters, and they don’t count. Gimme a minute, this is way harder than it looks.” He threw himself into the black leather wingback chair across from me. Very cool chair. No match for the man sitting in it, but still, nice chair. I waited as he made various pained expressions, finally pinching the bridge of his nose. “You seem like a nice girl, you know?”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Laughter seemed safer. “Thanks.”

“Hang on,” he groaned. “I’m not used to having to talk women into shit, either. Usually, they’re just happy to go along with whatever.”

And I did not blame them one bit. But I was reasonably certain there lay the path to ruin. I’d be trailing around behind him like a lovelorn puppy in no time. Not good.

His fingers tapped out a beat on the rolled wooden chair arms. He was a restless soul, was Malcolm Ericson. Never still. You could see how all of his energy made him such a great drummer. “You know, it was fun hanging out with you last night. I enjoyed it. Cool that you weren’t being psycho or getting in anyone’s face. Despite you being so into me that you get all crazy eyed, I kinda find you strangely soothing to be around right now.”

A shadow passed over his face, there and gone in an instant. If not for Ev’s visit I might have convinced myself I’d imagined it. But no. Something was definitely up with this man.

“You don’t bug me with a lot of questions. Well, you didn’t last night.” He reclined in the chair like a king, resting his ankle on his knee. The energy or tension running through him kept his fingers jittering, endlessly tapping. “Let’s look at it this way. You need money, right?”

I hesitated, but it was the truth. We both knew it. “Right.”

“I need something too.”

My eyes narrowed. If he started yelling about sexual healing again I’d throw him out, cool furniture, drum kit, and all. Or I’d lick him all over. With my current confusion and stress levels, chances were fifty/fifty. An opportunity to throw myself at him might just be too good to miss. After all, how many more chances would I get? My luck had to run out eventually.

“And I think you’ll suit my needs to perfection,” he continued.

“Your needs?”

One side of his mouth hitched higher (forty/sixty). “Every man has needs, young Anne. How old are you, by the way?”

“Twenty-three. I’m aware everyone has needs. But Mal, I’m not going to meet yours.” My nose went high. Sweet baby Jesus, I so badly wanted to meet his needs, but not when he gave me that smug grin. A girl had to have her pride.

“Sure you are.” He laughed softly, evilly, seeing right through me (twenty/eighty). “You’re dying to meet my needs. You can’t look away from my luscious half-naked body. The minute I opened the door you were pawing at me. It was like you were in heat or something.”

Fuck.

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, blocking him out in an attempt to regain my wits. If only my heart would stop slipping into cardiac arrest at the sight and sound of him. It would make things so much easier. “No, Mal. I lost my balance when you opened the door on me. Finding you here has actually come as a bit of a surprise. I’m not used to people just moving themselves in with me without some serious discussion up front.”

When I opened my eyes, he was silently watching me. Judging me.

“And I wasn’t pawing at you.”

The too-calm expression on his face spoke volumes. He didn’t believe me, not even a little. “Hey, now, don’t be embarrassed.”

I wasn’t a clueless virgin. My V-card had been stamped with my first and last long-term boyfriend at age sixteen. Since coming to Portland, I’d indulged in the odd date. Why wouldn’t I? I was young and free. I enjoyed sex. Thoughts of mounting a half-naked man on a wingback chair? Not so much.

I was out of control. No way could I let him know this, however.

“It’s okay, pumpkin. I don’t mind you pawing at me. If that’s how you feel the need to express your affection, that’s cool.”

“Mal.” This was going from bad to worse. I don’t even know why I started laughing. “Please stop talking. I need a minute. Consider this a boundary.”

His eyes lit with delight. “Hey, you’ve been thinking about what I said. That’s great. I respect your boundary, Anne.”

“Then why are you still talking?”

“Right. Sorry.”

I tried to find my calm. Why had I never made time for yoga? Deep breathing exercises would have been so useful.

When I opened my eyes, Mal smiled back at me serenely. The arrogant jerk. So confident. So hot. And so damn shirtless. What was with that? It was fall in Portland, cool weather, raining on and off. Normal people wore clothes this time of year.

“Can you put a shirt on?”

He scratched at his chin. “Mm, no. That’s my boundary, sorry. I like your sexy looks too much to get dressed.”

Crap, was I making crazy eyes?

“You’re perfect,” he muttered, smirk firmly in place.

Damn it, I was.

“What do you think my needs are, Anne?”

“I’m aware you’re talking about sex, Mal. That’s kind of obvious. But why, out of all the women at your disposal, would you choose me? That I don’t understand. And why you would move yourself in with me, I don’t really get that either. You could have gone to a hotel or rented a place of your own much nicer than here.”

“Noooo.” He slumped back in the seat, laying his meshed fingers on his flat belly. “I’m not talking about sex. I like to think you and I are above all of that messy, physical stuff, despite your infatuation with me. What I need is a girlfriend … well, a pretend girlfriend, and you, Anne Rollins, are perfect.”

“Fuck, what?”

He burst out laughing.

“You’re joking,” I said, relieved. Well, mad and relieved. Were rock stars so bored these days they had to resort to such extremes for entertainment?

“No, I’m not joking. Your reaction was funny, is all.” Long fingers brushed back his blond hair, pulling it off his face. “This is serious, a business transaction, and it’s gotta be kept on the down low. I’ve paid your rent. I got you furniture to replace what that asshole friend of yours took. In return, I want you to play my girlfriend for a while.”

My jaw gave way to gravity. “You’re not serious.”

“Why do you never believe anything I say? Anne, I am very serious.”

“Why me?”

He sighed and stared at the ceiling long and hard. “I dunno, the way you helped your friend out, even if she didn’t do right by you.”

“Mal, that doesn’t make me a good person. It makes me an idiot.” Given how things had gone down it was nothing less than the cold, hard truth. “You basically said as much yourself last night. I let her use me.”